Chapter 623 Sparrow
Hu Zhen left, leaving at the climax of Banzhen's barbarian war dance.
Gan Ning knew this clearly.
So when he came off the field steaming with heat, he asked a man next to him:
"Then Granny Hu is gone?"
The so-called Granny Hu is Hu Zhen. After he hesitated on patrol, he was called Granny Hu by the army.
Banzhen nodded manfully, but hesitated for a while and said:
"Kui, are we really not going to offend Hu Shuai by doing this?"
Gan Ning sneered:
"Offended? We people have long been a thorn in the side of those Liangzhou people. Can you believe it, if it hadn't been for my war dance, they might have taken your and my heads to suppress their military prestige?"
"Besides, what kind of military discipline do the Liangzhou soldiers under Hu Zhen have? He has the nerve to punish me? Give him some power and let him know how powerful we Sichuan people are."
Banzhenman had no doubts about Gan Ning's words, because he knew that the powerful Han people had always been like this.
At this time, a companion next to Gan Ning had a sad face and was worried:
"Kui, we are now under the control of others, and now the enemy is ahead, where is our way out?"
Gan Ning shook his head and his tone was quite resentful:
"Back then, the princes in Kansai wanted to eradicate the eunuchs, so I told Yang Ren to join them and cut through the mess quickly. But Yang Ren said that he was a warrior and did not want to cause such a thing. What happened next? Both the princes and the eunuchs suffered losses, but instead Let Dong Zhuo of the outer vassal take advantage. Now, we, the Xiyuan Army, are the stepmothers, and we still have to be hated by others for doing the hardest work."
Gan Ning saw that the generals were worried again, so he simply revealed something:
"After tonight, don't sleep too hard. I'm not really a loser. In short, I will lead my brothers to seek a way to survive."
The generals were excited and immediately thought of thousands of possibilities in their minds, so they all remained silent, waiting for Gan Ning's notification.
Just like what Kui said, they believed that Kui could lead his brothers to find a way to survive.
……
Afterwards, Tian Jun and the Kansai soldiers faced off for two days in Dusuoyuan. During this period, the two sides restrained their troops and only used sentry cavalry and a small number of rangers to conduct exploratory attacks. Both sides won or lost.
At this time, the military report sent by Tian Jun to the army was sent to the camp under Taiyuan City.
There, Zhang Chongzheng was sitting in command of the troops besieging Taiyuan.
So when Tian Jun came to report that they had captured the main reinforcements of the Kansai soldiers, he immediately summoned a group of staff to discuss the matter.
"Fifty thousand troops came from Kansai?"
The person who said this is Dong Zhaoye.
At this time, Dong Zhao had been transferred from the original military envoy to the Fei Army to the Secretary Supervisor, with the right to be the secretary of provincial affairs.
The person who succeeded him was Guo Tu, who was currently explaining the intelligence to the staff:
"Yes, and each of these 50,000 troops is an elite battalion leader. For example, Lu Bu of the Bingzhou Army is among them. This man has always been the key figure of our army. His bravery can be said to be the best in Kansai."
As the earliest outpost of the Taishan Army, Feijun's functions have long since changed as the Taishan Army grew.
It is divided into two armies, internal and external, and each army has its own envoys. Among them, the foreign army specializes in military intelligence, and the internal army specializes in assassinations. It can be said that one internal and one external are the most important intelligence systems of the Taishan Army.
As for people like Lu Bu, since they became famous, foreign military forces have specially collected intelligence and set up special files. Just like Lu Bu, his origin, place of origin, social relations, and military exploits were all investigated by the Taishan Army.
These files will be specially studied by the General Staff of the Privy Council to characterize the character and behavior of people like Lu Bu.
It can be said that the intelligence of half of the people in the Kansai Army is now known to the Taishan Army.
For example, after learning that the coach of the Guanxi Army was Hu Zhen, Zhang Chong learned about this person in detail.
To be honest, Zhang Chong was quite surprised when he saw Hu Zhen's file. In his impression, he was just a fool under Dong Zhuo who was jealous of Lu Bu and was finally defeated by Sun Jian.
But in fact, this person is an out-and-out warrior.
He comes from the Hu family in Anding, a well-known martial arts family in the border area. He went into battle with the army at the age of seventeen, showing his unusual bravery. Later, at the age of 20, he began to accumulate merit and join the army as Duan Jiong, the captain of the Qiang Guard at that time.
In the first year of Yongkang, the Shaodang Qiang rebelled again. They followed Duan Jiong to suppress the rebellion. They traveled four hundred miles a day to Zhangye and attacked and beheaded the chieftain. The next year, he joined the army again, and together with Dong Zhuo, the former military academy lieutenant of Duan Jiong at that time, they carried 15 days of military rations and rushed from Pengyang to Gaoping. They fought against Xian Lingzhong in Fengyi Mountain, beheaded 8,000 people, and captured 280,000 cattle, horses, and sheep. head.
At this point, Hu Zhen and Dong Zhuo became the two most fierce generals of the Xiliang Army.
After that, Duan Jiong finally pacified the Western Qiang, returned to the court victoriously, and served several times as Taiwei. But in the end, Duan Jiong died in a court battle, and Hu Zhen and Dong Zhuo were each demoted and lived in exile.
It was not until the Yellow Turban Uprising that shook the court pillars that these talents were reused and began to occupy various positions in the Han army.
From Hu Zhen's files, Zhang Chong saw some of the human network of Liangzhou Army today. These people are all political losers in the past, but now they surround Dong Zhuo and occupy the center again.
But this gorgeous resume is very contradictory to some current information.
For example, Hu Zhen is currently patrolling the Jiexiu area and does not support Taiyuan. In some contact battles, such as with Tian Jun, he was also very conservative, making it impossible to tell that this was a fierce warrior on the Pingqiang battlefield.
It is not easy for Zhang Chong and others to speculate on the changes in this. Nowadays, the proportion of Liangzhou people in the Taishan Army is not high, and they have always been separated from Liangzhou matters.
Therefore, Zhang Chong could only analyze more from the current battle situation.
Nowadays, the entire battlefield is actually divided into two units. They are the Taiyuan battlefield where he led his troops to besiege, and the peripheral Jiexiu battlefield.
Four days ago, Zhang Chong led an army of 50,000 to besiege Taiyuan. He originally thought that as all the outer strongholds in Taiyuan were pulled out, there would be a commotion in the city.
But he didn't expect Taiyuan to be stronger than expected. At that time, Zhang Chong realized that these people must have reinforcements outside. So he ordered Tian Jun to lead five thousand cavalry southward along the valley to look for Han reinforcements.
I thought it was fishing, but I didn't expect that what I encountered was a giant whale. Fifty thousand elite soldiers, this force is directly comparable to the Taishan Army in Bingzhou today.
Coupled with the Han army in Taiyuan City, the enemy's and our forces seemed to have reversed. But just when Zhang Chong thought that the enemy would march north to fight him, the enemy was entrenched in the Jiexiu area and could not move.
Since the enemy troops were immobile, Zhang Chong took the opportunity to intensify the siege of Taiyuan, using all kinds of moves. Every day, light cannon trucks hit the city with 500 stone bullets. The defenders in the city could not see any reinforcements after looking for a long time. Their morale was greatly reduced, and their enthusiasm for defending the city dropped significantly.
Just during the day, Guo Song's armored army rushed to the top of the city. Although they were driven back in the end, it was undoubtedly a major progress in the siege of the city.
Therefore, judging from the intentions of Shen Shang and others, Tian Jun's cavalry force will continue to be used to contain the Liangzhou soldiers, and the main force will continue to besiege Taiyuan.
But Dong Zhao and others had other ideas. They believed that the soldiers in Taiyuan had been frightened for a long time, and they were still able to resist because there were reinforcements outside. Therefore, it is better to go south with the army, annihilate the Liangzhou soldiers first, and then return with the whole army. Taiyuan will naturally be defeated without attacking.
But Xun You disagreed with this plan. He said this:
"The Western troops marching north now are a bit unusual. Judging from the military reports sent by Commander Tian in the past two days, his army only dispatched a few hundred men at a time and fought very conservatively. But although the number of troops is small, the combat power cannot be underestimated. Look, Tian Shuai's men are also good at fighting. They have already suffered hundreds of casualties in two days of contact. It can be seen that they are not a weak army, and their troops must have their own strategies when they stay in Jiexiu."
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Zhang Chong heard what Xun You said and asked:
"Gongda, what do you think?"
Xun You respectfully replied:
"Your Excellency, there are only two possibilities now. The first one is that Hu Zhen is mature and prudent and intends to fight steadily. Your Majesty, you see, Jiexiu, where the Western Army is currently stationed, is at the north entrance of Queshu Valley. ”
As he spoke, Xun You drew on the sand table to demonstrate the geography of the Taiyuan Basin.
After Xun You's demonstration, the generals understood the dangerous location where the Xizhou soldiers were currently stationed.
It turns out that there are two must-pass roads from Taiyuan south to Linfen Basin, namely Queshu Valley and Qianli Trail. And now the information collected from Tian Jun shows that these two roads are now controlled by Xizhou soldiers.
Liangzhou general Li Jue was stationed in Queshu Valley, and Guo Si was stationed in Qianlijing. It can be said that these two armies guarded the retreat of Jiexiu Hu Zhen's main force, one to the west and one to the east.
When Xun You mentioned the name of the Queshu Valley, Zhang Chong remembered that it was here that Li Shimin, the god of war, defeated Song Jingang. Unexpectedly, the Queshu Valley was here.
Afterwards, Zhang Chong asked in detail about the geography of Queshu Valley.
It turns out that the most important thing on the Bingzhou Plateau is the Fenshui River. After the erosion of rainwater and the impact of the Fenshui River, a vertical ditch was formed in the central part of Bingzhou Plateau. From north to south, there are five major basins: Datong, Xinding, Taiyuan, Linfen and Yuncheng.
These basins are separated by mountains. For example, from the Taiyuan Basin southward to the Linfen Basin, there is the Lingshi Canyon blocking it. You can only go down the Fenshui River Valley, from Lengquan Pass at the north entrance to Fenshui Pass at the south entrance. The canyon It is hundreds of miles long, steep and winding, and only the plank road on the cliff side can pass through.
This plank road is the same as the plank roads in Qinling Mountains and Bashan Mountains. It is carved into the mountain and planted with trees.
Walking on this plank road is extremely dangerous. This can be seen from the fact that this road is called Bird and Rat Valley, which means that only birds and rats can pass through.
It is precisely because of this that the ancients opened up another land route between the mountains and ridges, which is the Thousand Miles Trail. It goes directly south from Chengguan in Lingshi County, passes through Gaobiling, and ends in Yong'an in the south.
It's just that this road is also very steep and difficult, so it's better than nothing.
Therefore, Zhang Chong understood that Hu Zhen had now mastered all the key passes into the Linfen Basin. It seemed that he really meant to fight steadily and step by step.
It deployed its main force to confront the Taishan Army in the Jiexiu area, which not only showed its aggressiveness, but also gave Taiyuan confidence in the north. At the same time, the rear army was deployed at Queshu Valley Road and Qianli Trail. If the battle in the front went smoothly, then this would be the reserve force. If the front was unfavorable and the army had to withdraw, these two armies could also serve as the rear.
From this point of view, this Hu Zhen really has something.
So Zhang Chong signaled Xun You to continue speaking.
Seeing that Zhang Chong understood the benefits, Xun You continued:
"Now, the enemy forces have completely occupied the Fenhe Gorge. It can be said that they have occupied all the favorable terrain, which can be attacked and defended. There is a lot of food and grass in Taiyuan City. It can be said that as long as reinforcements are on the side, Taiyuan will be impregnable. On the contrary, our army will not be able to attack or defend it. Whether to attack Taiyuan or Jiexiu, we are in a disadvantageous position of being attacked from both sides. Therefore, what I am worried about now is the strategy used by Hu Zhen, which is not a decisive battle with our army, but a long-term confrontation with deep ditches and high bases. In winter, even if our army has more people from the north, it will not survive the next month.”
Xun You's words silenced all the generals, because they knew that the situation Xun You mentioned was very likely to occur.
Yes, now the army relies entirely on Fei Huxing for supplies. The heavy snowfall has already interrupted supplies. When the weather gets colder, they may really have to withdraw their troops.
Zhang Chong also knew how powerful he was, so he asked Xun You what the enemy's other tactics were.
Xun You smiled and said:
"That is, it is not important what Hu Zhen thinks, but whether he can do it. Even if we think it is a good strategy, Ding Yuan in Taiyuan City will think it is good? Then Dong Zhuo behind will think it is good? ?”
Dong Zhao retorted:
"Mr.
Xun You smiled and said no more. Because he couldn't say this.
But Zhang Chong spoke up for Xun You. He smiled and said to Dong Zhao:
"It is precisely because Dong Zhuo appointed 50,000 elite troops to Hu Zhen that Hu Zhen was afraid that he would not be able to fight steadily."
Everyone knows that this is really a matter of suspicion.
With Xun You's analysis, Zhang Chong's doubts disappeared, so he continued to ask for advice:
"If the enemy wants to fight steadily in the follow-up, what should our army do? If the enemy wants to send troops to support Taiyuan, what should our army do?"
Xun You said:
"Your Majesty, our army actually still occupies the initiative on the battlefield. What you all said just now is right. The Han soldiers in the city have long been frightened. They have more than enough to protect themselves and not enough to attack. So no matter how the enemy moves, our army can immediately Go south and launch a general attack on the Kansai soldiers. The specific strategy is to mobilize all the cavalry and retreat the front line of Tian Jun's cavalry to attack the Kansai soldiers quickly. Once the enemy army retreats, our army will pursue them one after another. And when our army and the enemy army attack Queshu Valley, how can the enemy army resist?"
After hearing this, all the generals shouted for good advice, but only Dong Zhao felt aggrieved and said to himself:
"Good Xun You, what's the difference between your plan and mine? Just because you talked about the Fenhe Gorge, do you dare to take my credit?"
But Dong Zhao didn't say much, he just wrote it down.
Therefore, Zhang Chong decided on the strategy for this battle. That night he gathered the assault cavalry generals in the camp and arranged the subsequent dispatch sequence.
Afterwards, each assault cavalry unit repaired all night, and at dawn the next day, they killed Jiexiu.
A battle between dragons and tigers is ready to go.
(End of chapter)